The Ministry believes this will allow training institutions to produce nurses to meet the demands of the health sector, thus reducing unemployment.

[contextly_sidebar id=”HodbIV1wLAg84P4bJXb3XVfqepWxSlFP”]This new directive means public and private institutions accredited to train nurses in the country will reduce their intake by almost 1, 600 in 2017.

Speaking to Citi News on the new development, the Public Relations Officer of the Health Ministry, Robert Cudjoe, explained the impact of the quota system will have on the nursing training schools.

“Some schools that were taking less last year are taking more and some that were taking more are now taking less simply because we did an analysis and came to the conclusion that some schools don’t have the facilities to admit the number that they have been recruiting and that is compromising quality.”

“As a nation, we don’t only have to train more health professionals but also look at the quality aspect so these measures are going to address some of these key issues.”

Quality of nurses was compromised

The Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association has also thrown its weight behind the quotas despite the concerns that this will result in a shortage of nurses nationwide.

The President of the Association, Kwaku Asante Krobea noted on the Citi Breakfast Show that his outfit was “consulted and we gave an endorsement of it because we felt it was good enough.”

It had become clear that the training institutions don’t have the capacity to cater for the large numbers they were admitting, “because of pressure from candidates that were putting in applications and also from other stakeholder institutions.”

This, in turn, compromised the quality of the nurses churned out, Mr. Asante Krobea added.

“We had situations where some individulas had completed the training but they lacked the condifences to confront the situations before them. Yes indeed, the quanitity matters to us but the quality was compromised.”

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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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This follows a directive from the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) to the 75 accredited institutions training nurses in Ghana, including private ones, to admit students in accordance with an earlier discussion.

The directive was contained in a circular issued by the council and signed by its Registrar, Mr Felix Nyante.

“The Nursing and Midwifery Council of Ghana would like to respectfully inform you of the admission quota for the 2017 admissions to nursing and midwifery training institutions. This follows discussions held in Koforidua on June 27, 2017 on the subject matter,” the document obtained by the Daily Graphic said.

Last year, 7,335 students were admitted to the various institutions, but the number will reduce to 5,737 when the directive is implemented.

The figures mean that last year’s admission figure has been reduced by almost 22 per cent.

Losses

Although quotas increase the admission spots generally for private nursing training institutions by 38 students — from 899 in the 2016/2017 academic year to 937 this academic year, a number of the institutions which admitted higher numbers of students have had their intake reduced.

For instance, the Pentecost University, which admitted 96 students last year, can only take 35; the Presbyterian University College in Asante Akyem, which enrolled 92 students last year, has been given 57 this year; the Garden City University from 59 to 35; the Central University from 68 to 56 and the Premier School of Nursing from 100 last year to 60 this year.

Gained

On the other hand, some of the private nursing training schools had the quota system offering them more students than they admitted last year.

Examples include Golden Sunbeam College of Science and Technology, from five last year to 22 this year; Bimaks College of Business and Health Sciences in Agona Swedru, 14 to 35; Narh Bita from eight to 35 for its degree programme and 44 to 58 for its diploma programme; 20 to 82 for Western Hills School of Nursing; West End University College, 29 to 59; Hopkins Health Training Institute, three to 18; Wisconsin International University College, 29 to 35, and Withrow College, four to 20.

Hardest hit

But the hardest hit by the reduction in admission figures are the public nursing training colleges and the universities offering nursing, with the cut in admission figures ranging from 10 to more than 100 in some schools.

Ntotrotroso College of Nursing has its last academic year admission figure of 235 cut to 82; Dunkwa-on-Offin Nursing and Midwifery Training College, 250 to 109; Ho Nursing Training College, 183 to 108; Korle Bu Nursing and Midwifery Training College, 245 to 153; Kwadaso Nursing Training College, 254 to 152; Tamale Nursing Training College, 210 to 111, and Keta Nursing and Midwifery Training College, 137 to 77.

Others are Cape Coast Nursing Training College, 229 to 91; the University of Cape Coast, 100 to 75;University for Development Studies,123 to 97, and University of Health and Allied Sciences, 125 to 80.

However, four of the colleges in Wa, Kwapong, Damongo and Zuarungu gained between two and 48 students on their last year admissions.

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Source: Graphic Online

The post Nursing schools given quotas – Admissions to reduce appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.